Signs of Spring

For horse owners, a real sign of spring is when the pastures are once again able to support the horses. I got the call from Tim this weekend that he was discontinuing hay and that the horses would be on pasture until next fall.

The horses are very happy with that decision! Tim has moved them into two separate pastures that have been recently connected.

He has an ingenious way of rotating horses through the northwest pasture, the northeast pasture, the nursery paddock, the new barn paddock, the southwest pasture, and finally, the southeast paddock. 

Go here to see a satellite tour of the property. 

Using a gate system that he devised, the horses have always been within fencing during a pasture rotation except for when they were put into the southeast paddock.

It was disconnected from the others and the horses had to be haltered and led into it rather than simply opening a gate and letting them walk in by themselves.

Not any more. Last fall Tim fenced in a connecting lane between the new barn paddock and the southeast paddock, expanding the size of the southeast paddock at the same time by enclosing part of the lawn around the new barn.

The blue lines show how the new barn paddock (top rectangle) is connected with the southeast paddock (bottom rectangle) by a tunnel alonside the new barn that leads into a new pasture area which then leads into the southeast paddock. (Ignore the red pin and circle.)

The horses are able to walk back and forth between the two now and no longer do we have to halter them to move them.

Having the horses there made my visit yesterday much easier than it has been for a while. The horses were close by where I always park and I didn't have to call them all the way up from the northern pastures. (Or hike out to them.)

Sultanna gazes out from the connecting lane to the new pasture that's been added from the lane to the southeast paddock.

I visited with the horses and then decided to do a "mama check" on Suntanna. She is due to foal in early May.

A good way to tell when foaling is getting close is if the mare is bagging up. (The udder begins to fill with milk.)

Things still looked pretty normal, but then, she's not due for a few more weeks.

When we finished visiting, the horses meandered down the lane and then out into the southeast paddock.

I think they like being able to walk back and forth through the lane. And I am glad that every time Tim rotates pastures, everyone is safely enclosed throughout the process. Win-win!

Bonus Spring Video

Last night after dinner, Craig and I were sitting on the patio with the dogs and enjoying the weather. The Wabash River is just through the woods on the other side of our neighborhood, and that woods is very old and chock full of wildlife. Listen to the spring peepers in them! (Also sometimes called tree frogs because they live in trees.) They were so loud last night!

 

My Penpal, Pepper: Peeps & Spring Peepers

Greetings, Mom!

I am so excited. Easter is coming, and Lynn said that the Easter Bunny is going to bring me an Easter basket! Even better though, the Peeps for my basket are already here! Last night Lynn took me out to do my business and we could hear the Peeps calling to me from the woods!

I tingled all over with excitement and asked Lynn if we could go and get those Peeps. I really wanted a purple one but you know me, I'd settle for pink or yellow or just about any color. Lynn started laughing (she does that a lot) and said, "Oh, Pepper! You big goof!" (She says that a lot, too.) 

Lynn explained that there is a difference between Peeps and spring peepers, and that what we were hearing were the spring peepers. I responded that I don't mind if my Peeps talk; I am sure that talking Peeps are just as good. (Maybe a little more expensive, but I'm worth it, right?) But then Lynn told me that the spring peepers were really frogs that were talking to each other in the woods.

Frogs?? FROGS??? Eeew! Why are there frogs in the woods! They're supposed to be in ponds and creeks. And why are the frogs talking? Are they telling each other where the Peeps are hidden? Even worse, are they eating my Peeps??

Mom, I am so confused and could really use your help. Will you please talk to Lynn and tell her to let me go to the woods and get the Peeps before the frogs eat them all? I would really appreciate it! (You know how hungry I can get.)

Wags and licks,

Hungry for Peeps Pepper